Friday, 18 May 2012

Today I had time to pop in to a couple of charity shops. I found this 1970's bikini set and matching kaftan, some girl's vintage sandals and a copy of Jack Kerouac's On The Road, which I have been wanting to read forever.

Wednesday, 16 May 2012

I bought this sewing machine for £5 from the Bakewell car boot sale. A lovely old lady sold it to me and it's in perfect working order. It did need a bit of a scrub though, you can see in the photograph the patch that I cleaned and what a big difference it made. The only problem with the machine is that some of the metal has yellowed, can anyone recommend a way of removing this? I have tried bicarbonate of soda and lemon juice so far but neither have made much difference! The first project I have planned is to make my own cat collar, so I will post the results when I have finished.

I have been keeping an eye out for a small suitcase to use as a sewing/fabric box and was delighted to come across this navy one for £3 in my local charity shop. It is in excellent condition and I love the bright red lining fabric.

The embroidery in the hoop is a project that I started a while back but haven't got round to finishing it yet. It's based on a photograph that I traced on to a piece of cotton.

Thursday, 10 May 2012

I recently finished this embroidery project. I purchased the vintage material at the Stockport Vintage Village and secured it in an embroidery hoop. I am pleased with how it turned out, but I think if I was to make it again I would use a different colour for the names as they are quite difficult to see. I would also include my cat's name!

I sold my very first item from my Etsy shop yesterday, it was a proud moment! Here's the dress...

I sent it off to a customer in Norway, I really hope she likes it. Here's how I posted it...

I covered it in two layers of blue tissue paper and cut a heart out of brown paper. I then wrapped it in parcel string before threading the two ends through a button and tying a bow. The labels are just basic ones from Staples that I decorated using a heart shaped paper cutter. I wrote the label by hand but I am currently bidding on a typewriter on ebay and I think they will look really cute typed up.

Wednesday, 9 May 2012

This little lady rules the house! She is named after the character 'Lol' from the Shane Meadows' film 'This is England'. I would love a second cat (named Woody, obviously), I just need to persuade the Mister!

This weekend I did really well in charity shops and car boot sales. The collection of threads will come in really useful for various craft projects that I have planned, and only cost me £2. The blue floral dress near the top is by Liberty of London and the green 1960's dress is by Peter Barron and has a beautiful drape back. I have to say though, my two favourite items are the four mini pyrex bowls in the cutest colours and the bunny figurine which is currently smiling down at me from the mantle piece. Here is a close up of it's little face...

Hello!

My name is Anna and I run Minnie Vintage, an online vintage clothing and homeware shop based in Sheffield in the United Kingdom. I am a lover of all things retro, an avid film collector, crafter, charity shop obsessive and dedicated cat lady. Welcome to my blog!